About Landscaping – Some General Principles

As a contractor focusing on groundworks in Telford and beyond, a large part of our remit is hard landscaping of development sites and even on occasion private homeowners’ external spaces.

Landscaping of any kind should never be a ‘nice to have’, tagged on at the end of the project. Whether the development you’re working on is on public land or will be sold to private homeowners in due course, the landscape is all-important.

The Importance of Landscaping

Landscaping serves many purposes, including addressing environmental concerns and regenerating an area to add social and economic value. It’s usually subdivided into soft landscaping – trees, shrubs and other planting; and hardscaping, which are the inanimate features of an area, such as roads, paving, retaining walls and so on.

In general, in terms of civil engineering and public works, it’s increasingly recognised that attractive public spaces create healthier, more sustainable communities where populations thrive. They improve the local economy by drawing more visitors into the area for leisure and for retail purposes; and encouraging companies to establish businesses there.

However, if you’re building a new housing development, for instance, you need the units to sell quickly and for a good price in order to receive a decent return on your investment. In this case, proper care and attention to the landscaping of the site will entice house-buyers to your development and will set it apart from other properties they have viewed in the area.

Hard landscaping in particular can also address some of the problems you may have with your site. Done correctly, it can contribute towards proper drainage, preventing surface water from pooling and discouraging flooding by diverting it from hard surfacing into the mains sewer system. Retaining walls can protect buildings from common issues such as rot, cracking and flooding that can be caused by sloping sites and excess, pooling groundwater. Footway construction such as paths can also prevent soil erosion and protect soft elements like grass from being killed off by excessive footfall.

So how can you ensure you get your landscaping right? One useful tip is to assess your target market and consider what features they might find most desirable.

For instance, if you are building homes that may be bought by families with young children, then areas of grass to play on could be a valuable commodity. A car parking space off the road is a must-have for many families, as is a patio area for barbecuing and other outdoor entertaining. If, on the other hand, you are creating homes for older people or young professionals, there may be slightly different considerations. Then, your target market could be looking for easy or low-maintenance gardens – more paving than grass, additional and perhaps raised beds for easier planting.

Landscaping by the Experts at G N Groundworks Ltd

Once you have decided on the elements that will make up the landscape on your development, you need a firm of experts to execute your plans. Here at G N Groundworks, we have been in the industry for over 25 years. We address all aspects of groundworks in Telford, the wider West Midlands and beyond. Whether you need earthworks or concrete works for your housing infrastructure, kerbing for a project on a public highway or hard landscaping of an entire site, we’re the firm to trust.